Sustainable Agriculture in Page County - Part 1

The updated 2008 plan summarizes the state of Page County agriculture by highlighting the declining number of farms: from 1,327 farms in 1940 to less than 400 in 2008; 5,800 acres of farmland repurposed between 1997 and 2002; and a decline in the market value of production from $115 million in 1997 to $108.7 million in 2002. As outlined here, the challenges contributing to this decline include: competition from producers elsewhere, the pressure to sell land for development, and rising costs of feed, fuel, and fertilizer.

A section I found interesting was the discussion of the relationship between poultry farmers and the industry itself. The farmers own the land and buildings, but the poultry is owned by the large companies – Tyson, Cargill, Pilgrim’s Pride – who are beginning to make better economic decisions about where to locate their operations, with the result that Page County is often not optimal.

When I use the term “better economic decisions” above, I am referring to the simple fact that these large companies are acting in their own self interest to minimize their costs. The implementation often involves consolidation of farms, suppliers, and processing in close proximity to each other to minimize transportation time and costs – a decision process that does not favor Page County.

To be the selected location, economic theory suggests there needs to be a natural advantage, such as a major center of production for feed corn or some other input resource, or a point of intermodal transfer for transportation. Page County has none of these – and the decline of farms and farm production income is the result.

On the other hand, these consolidated centers of production are not operated in the most sustainable ways – I’d bet that there are a lot of challenges containing and managing waste materials, and energy use is not a top priority for management. With the Shenandoah River facing stress from other past and present sources in the watershed, there is yet another reason that Page County may not be the best location for these operations.

Even so, Page County remains the second largest poultry producer in Virginia. Yet, with 400 small businesses and $108 million in revenues at stake, this plan outlines as its primary objective:

“Department of Economic Development will ensure that political leadership of the County is educated, as soon as possible, about the issues facing the agricultural community.”

I’ve reached the end of my post today. Tomorrow, we’ll take a look at the issues and opportunities section of the two-page write-up on sustainable agriculture, and I have a few more thoughts on this topic to add.

To sum up, I’ve got to underscore that if anything in this plan creates a sense of urgency for me, it is right here, this industry, and the relative lack of importance it is given in this overall plan. The plan sets up the concept of a three-legged stool for the Page County economy – tourism, agriculture, and industry. So far, two of those three have been given short shrift – no real hard thinking on the facts – and that’s a real disappointment.